Arafat Baffles U.s., Israel By Spurning Peace Deals

September 13, 2000|By Hugh Dellios, Tribune Foreign Correspondent.

Arafat has popular support for his tough stance on Jerusalem from across the Palestinian territories and beyond. Returning from Camp David, he was greeted like a hero after resisting Clinton's pressure, and he then went on a whirlwind tour to seek backing from Arab and Islamic leaders.

On the other hand, some of those leaders indicated that the choice on Jerusalem was exclusively his, albeit with an understanding that he would take care of their interests in the mosques there. And Arafat has been known to shock fellow Arabs with his decisions to compromise, beginning with Oslo itself.

By far the weaker negotiating partner, Arafat has proven himself capable of going to the brink.

The best example was the signing of the Gaza-Jericho agreement in 1994, when Arafat infuriated Israelis and Egyptians by refusing to sign a part of the accord during a ceremony that was being televised globally. Only after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak had angry words with him did Arafat sign.

"You can't get a better display of brinkmanship than that," said Richard Murphy, a Mideast fellow with the Council of Foreign Relations in New York. "I think Arafat would like to be the president of Palestine and he expects to be the president. But that doesn't override what he sees as his limits [on Jerusalem and other issues]."

In Gaza, some of Arafat's sharpest critics say they expect him to make a deal. Many see his standing as depending on the peace process and the monetary aid he receives from the U.S. and other countries, and say he will not be able to resist their pressure indefinitely.

"Arafat has no choice," said Ghazi Hamed, editor of Al Resala, a newspaper in Gaza published by the radical Hamas movement. "I know he wants to do something big before his death, and from Oslo until now, he did many things that we didn't expect. He is a special man in the Arab world; he is strong, but I think he has found that he is flying without wings."

Hamed, who has been jailed eight times by Arafat for criticizing the Palestinian regime, said he believes Arafat is just holding out to get as much as possible. And he likely has until late October, when the Israeli parliament could vote to topple Barak, to test how sweet the offers could get.

"What was offered on the table was miserable. He can wait," Hamed said.